You Like The Smart Ones? You Should Have Said So Sooner! - Chapter 21

Chapter 21: Science Top Scorer

Qin Mian’s pen came to a difficult halt as he silently looked up: “This… is your phone infected with a virus?”

Song Ying: “…It’s nothing, just the daily operations of a dumbass named Ji.”

Qin Mian: “…Is this the standard mental state of you guys from Linjiang No. 2 High?”

Song Ying immediately clarified: “No, absolutely not. It’s just him. I’m not like that.”

Song Ying: Dumbass. Get lost. Are you mourning or something?

Ji Chenxiang: !!!

Ji Chenxiang: Thank goodness! You’re still alive!

Ji Chenxiang: How is it?? You and Old Mo? Are you okay?

Song Ying sat back in his chair with his legs relaxed, tapping the keys.

[Song Ying: How else could it be? You think I’m like you? It’s fine.

Although Mo Weixin was fierce when scolding people, he didn’t scold everyone. People like Song Ying were categorized as the “precious treasures” Mo Weixin looked after; aside from the incident a few days ago and the National Exams, he had never been scolded.

Ji Chenxiang:Ji Chenxiang: That’s cold Ji Chenxiang: Straight through the heart…Ji Chenxiang: You’ve lost me… QAQ

After a while, Ji Chenxiang finished his dramatic act and finally got serious.

Ji Chenxiang: So you and Old Mo really made up?

Song Ying: We never actually fell out.

Ji Chenxiang: Fine, then I can rest easy.

Song Ying: Yeah, thanks.

Ji Chenxiang: Thanks for what? My young son is grown, taking up his scrolls for the Imperial Examination; as his father, I couldn’t be happier.

Song Ying: ……Would it kill you to go one sentence without being a creep?

Ji Chenxiang: Not really, but it feels so good to do it hahahahahahaha!

Song Ying: Dumbass. Go eat your dinner, Science Top Scorer~

It was currently dinner time. Ji Chenxiang stared at that tilde (~), pushing up his silver-rimmed glasses.

Ji Chenxiang: ? Why do I feel like that tilde at the end is mocking me?

Song Ying: Congratulations, your intuition is correct.

Ji Chenxiang: ??? why??

Song Ying stopped replying.

Qin Mian had also finished his test paper; there wasn’t much of a time difference between them. He was slightly surprised by the interaction between Song Ying and Ji Chenxiang: “I didn’t expect this year’s top scorer to have this kind of personality.”

Song Ying’s eyes flickered as he looked at him: “What kind of personality did you expect?”

“I thought a mega-scholar like that would be the type immersed in a sea of problems, unable to pull himself out—brilliant but a bit cold and aloof,” Qin Mian said earnestly. “I didn’t expect him to be so lively, not looking like he’s been crushed by studying at all.”

As he spoke, a hint of admiration even surfaced in his eyes.

Song Ying: “……”

Good grief, Ji Chenxiang, you little…

He thought for a moment and decided to expose his friend’s secrets: “That’s because you haven’t seen him get scolded three times a week.”

Qin Mian raised an eyebrow, curiosity flashing in his eyes.

Subsequently, Song Ying shared many stories with Qin Mian:

How Ji Chenxiang managed to get chased and scolded by Mo Weixin three times in one week; how one second he’d receive a certificate for a city-wide competition, and the next his disastrous monthly exam results would be announced, making him the laughingstock of the class; and how, after being criticized by Mo Weixin, he hid in the bathroom during evening self-study to cry, only to scare a male classmate who walked in…

It was a total eye-opener for Qin Mian.

Meanwhile, Ji Chenxiang, who was eating in the A-University cafeteria, let out a violent sneeze. The junior sitting opposite him handed over a napkin with concern: “Senior, have you been staying up too late? Your immunity might be down. Take care of yourself.”

Ji Chenxiang waved it off casually: “It’s definitely a certain guy named Song talking smack about me behind my back.”

Junior: “Huh?”

Ji Chenxiang didn’t explain.

On the day Qin Mian was discharged from the hospital, Ding Zi drove to pick them up. When they returned to the classroom, they were met with a “baptism” of stares from the entire class. Curiosity was written on everyone’s faces as their gazes bounced back and forth between the two.

Qin Mian’s expression was wooden: “Are we monkeys in a circus? Is it really worth staring like that?”

Yu Canxing couldn’t contain her gossiping heart and asked in a “small” voice that was actually quite loud: “I heard that you and Song Ying fought over a girl and landed each other in the hospital?”

“……What? Come again?”

What kind of nonsense are you talking?

Qin Mian and Song Ying’s faces were blank, thinking they had misheard.

Lin Zhixia shook her head beside them, sighing with emotion: “Before, I thought you two had a love-hate, ‘you chase, I flee’ kind of relationship. I didn’t expect you to be love rivals.”

Qin Mian: “……” Song Ying: “……”

“…What kind of nonsense are you spouting now?” Qin Mian asked with a deadpan face.

Lin Zhixia froze and asked: “Is it not true?”

Qin Mian retorted: “Is it?”

She blinked and looked at Yu Canxing, who had given her the news. Yu Canxing was also dazed and reached out to punch the person sitting in front of her: “Didn’t you say Qin Mian and Song Ying fought over a girl and went to the hospital?”

“……” Ye Jun knitted his brows, resisting the urge to roll his eyes: “I clearly said they fought because of one person.”

“Huh?” Yu Canxing questioned, “Really?”

Speechless, Ye Jun turned around to verify his words: “Cao Wei!”

“What’s up!” Cao Wei responded from not far away.

“Didn’t you tell me before that Qin Mian and Song Ying fought because of one person?” Ye Jun asked.

Under everyone’s watchful eyes, Cao Wei looked bewildered. “Huh? Did I? I remember clearly saying that Qin Mian and Song Ying fought with other people.”

Ye Jun: “……”

He looked at Yu Canxing with the same disbelief: “Really?”

Cao Wei puffed out his chest: “Of course it’s true.”

Lin Zhixia helplessly rubbed her forehead: “Fine, I guess I’ve just witnessed the birth of a ‘game of telephone’ rumor.”

Qin Mian gave a disdainful “tsk” and hooked his arm around Song Ying’s neck: “You guys aren’t even good at making up stories. Can’t you see how good my relationship with Song Ying is?”

Song Ying was slightly taller than Qin Mian; he naturally tilted his head down a bit to accommodate Qin Mian’s arm. A faint, enjoying smile played on his lips.

Lin Zhixia, taking all of this in, blinked and desperately pressed down the corners of her mouth which were curling upward.

Oh my god, I ship it!

Yu Canxing shook her head, sighing: “As expected, rumors can’t be trusted.”

Qin Mian’s return was just a small interlude. Under the pressure of the upcoming monthly exams, the brief moment of liveliness vanished, and the classroom quickly fell silent again.

Qin Mian lightly tapped the edge of his desk. Song Ying turned to look at him.

Qin Mian lowered his voice: ” I can’t even imagine how shocked these people will be when your results come out after the monthly exams. You might even spark public outrage.”

Song Ying’s eyes shone with genuine confusion: “Hmm? Why?”

He had lied to Qin Mian, so it made sense for Qin Mian to be angry, but why would everyone else be?

“The people in our class will just crack some jokes at most.” Qin Mian’s eyelids drooped as he scanned the room, his tone shifting. “But the people in the other classes, especially Class 3, won’t necessarily be the same.”

“In their minds, repeat students are already seen as crowding out their resources—let alone a repeat student as incredibly talented as you.”

Song Ying understood, but he didn’t care about those people. His logic was crystal clear, and his voice held a natural confidence: “If I were only slightly better than them, that argument might hold water. But if I leave them ten blocks behind, the problem doesn’t exist. After all, I’ll be at a height they can’t even reach.”

Qin Mian stared at Song Ying and suddenly smiled. He realized he liked seeing Song Ying look confident and dismissive.

“Makes sense.”